Startup · $2.1b raised
Melbourne, VIC
Every investor coverage indicates participated in a round Judo raised.
| Investor | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Office of Financial Management | Venture debt | $500,000,000 |
| Commonwealth Government | Venture debt | $500,000,000 |
| Federal Government | Venture debt | $500,000,000 |
| Citi | Venture debt | $350,000,000 |
| Citibank | Venture debt | $350,000,000 |
| Magnetar Capital | Series D+ | - |
| Moore Strategic Ventures | Series D+ | - |
| UniSuper | Series D+ | - |
| Abu Dhabi Capital | Series C · Venture debt | - |
| Bain Capital Credit | Series C · Venture debt | - |
| Ironbridge Capital | Series C | - |
| Myer Family Investments | Series C | - |
| Credit Suisse | Venture debt | - |
| Ironbridge | Venture debt | - |
| OPTrust | Venture debt | - |
| SPF Investment Management | Venture debt | - |
| Tikehau Capital | Venture debt | - |
The transaction that ended Judo's run as a startup, per published coverage. It closes the funding history too, where it is the ladder's last rung.
| Bought by | Kind | Announced | Price | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | IPO | 1 Nov 2021 | $2.3b | SmartCompany (Wed 29 Jun 2022), Startup Daily, SmartCompany (Mon 25 Oct 2021) |
Companies Judo acquired or merged with, per published coverage. Buying a company is not investing in one: nothing here counts in the deals column.
Stories naming Judo. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
Ranking of Australia’s five best-funded fintechs — Airwallex, Athena, Zeller, InDebted and Brighte — profiling each one’s total raised, most recent raise, backers, valuation and growth moves.
CloudTech, a Melbourne blockchain payments firm, has closed a $14 million Series A from undisclosed investors, partly in Bitcoin and USDT, to build an institutional custody service for crypto holdings.
Westpac has invested $10 million in legal tech platform Lawpath, deepening an existing partnership; the article also recounts Lawpath's earlier raises from LegalZoom, Adcock Private Equity and other backers between 2015 and 2021.
Ethical fintech Maslow attracted 288 backers for a $409,676 equity crowdfunding round, largely founders from the impact sector, and hired two staff as it builds a subscription-based, at-cost financial services platform.
LaunchVic has selected ten scaleups for the last intake of its 30X30 mentoring program, which pairs their leaders with mentors from unicorn companies; the 20 earlier participants have together raised over $98.7 million.
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Long-serving Judo Bank co-founder Joseph Healy will hand the CEO job to deputy Chris Bayliss in March; the piece also recaps the bank's capital raising and stockmarket listing.
AI search startup Marqo has landed a $12.5 million Series A and is relocating its headquarters to San Francisco, while LaunchVic statistics show Victoria's ecosystem grew in value despite a funding drop.
Biza.io, a Brisbane consumer data right firm, adds three staff: Jessica Booth leads customer success, Colleen D'Arcy joins as HR Business Partner, and Stephanie Robinson becomes Technical Writer.
Sydney small-business lender Shift, once known as GetCapital, has secured a Series C worth $27 million, with Sequoia Capital Southeast Asia heading the round and earlier backers also taking part.
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LaunchVic reopens expressions of interest for its 30×30 program aiming to create 30 Victorian unicorns by 2030, recalling last year's nine participants, while July appoints Joanne Smith as its first chief financial officer.
Victorian luggage retailer July has hired Joanne Smith away from Little Birdie as its first chief financial officer, after its leadership team completed LaunchVic's 30×30 scaleup program.
Startup Daily reports neobank Volt is winding up, returning deposits and selling its mortgage book after a failed capital raise, recapping earlier raises by Judo Bank and Alex plus past neobank failures and acquisitions.
Volt, Australia's first licensed neobank, is closing its deposit-taking business and handing back its banking licence after global capital raising failed, telling customers to move funds; the article recalls Xinja, 86 400 and Judo outcomes.
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SME funding platform Swoop has raised a Series A round to grow its Australian and global operations, expand its team, and build out its advisor product for accountants.
KPMG's half-yearly fintech report finds Australian fintech funding rebounded in 2021, recapping local raises, listings and acquisitions alongside record global deal figures and a bullish outlook for 2022.
A year-end recap of SmartCompany's most-read startup stories of 2021, recalling raises by Carted, Octopus Deploy, Who Gives a Crap and Judo Bank, plus a bank acquisition, listings and a liquidation.
A finance commentator evaluates Judo Bank, an SME lender built by ex-big-bank executives, covering its growth, government funding lines, planned ASX listing at a $2.317 billion valuation, and which businesses it suits.
Novatti has wrapped up a $10.5m Series A to bankroll its new banking arm, with the money conditional on regulatory sign-off, and has bought out BC Growth Investments' stake in the subsidiary.
Sydney neobank Avenue Bank has received a restricted banking licence from APRA, letting it lend working capital to small businesses, with a full licence targeted for mid-2022.
An Envestnet | Yodlee executive argues open banking and data aggregation have helped Australian fintechs grow through the pandemic, citing sector investment figures and past raises by Finder, Judo Bank, AfterPay and Airwallex.
Volt has bought Australian Mortgage to add digital mortgage approvals, paying mostly in shares; the piece recalls AFG's $15m investment in Volt, plus Xinja's shutdown and NAB's $220m buyout of 86 400.
Also Australian FinTech
Cut Through Venture's newsletter reviews first-half 2021 Australian and New Zealand startup funding, covering aggregate round statistics, new unicorns, founder age patterns, and the strong funding of recently founded COVID-era companies.
SME lender Judo Bank raised $174 million in equity at a $1.9 billion valuation and announced a $50 million Tier 2 debt issue, following a $284 million round four months earlier.
Novatti has partnered with BC Invest, whose subsidiary will pay $2m for a stake in Novatti's banking subsidiary, while a BC Invest consortium invests $3m in Novatti via share placement, ahead of licence approval.
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KPMG's annual review reports Australian fintech investment of US$1.4 billion in 2020, featuring eNett's acquisition, raises by Judo Bank and Brighte, a cryptocurrency-backed IPO, and global fintech trends.
Weekly newsletter rounds up venture news: multiple Australian and regional VC fund closes, startup raises including Brighte and Judo, acquisitions of eNett and Sine, neobank collapses, and new revenue-based lenders.
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Roundup of ten Australian fintechs that raised capital between March and July 2020, including Payright, Zeller, Judo Bank and Airwallex; PictureWealth raised $12 million and acquired NEO Financial Solutions.
Also SmartCompany·SmartCompany
Square Peg investor Ben Hensman argues conditions favour Australian fintech founders despite COVID-19, citing the firm's seed backing of Zeller and more than $100 million invested in local fintech businesses.
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Techboard's periodic funding analysis reports record Australian startup funding in March and April 2020, driven by large neobank raises, while declining deal counts suggest an emerging Covid-19 downturn.
Sydney digital home loan startup Verteva has raised a $33 million Series A from New Zealand's Bolton Equities, with founders Andrew Walker and Chris Lumby, formerly of Westpac, planning to disrupt mortgage lending.
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Australian SME lender Judo Bank has closed a $230 million raise from existing backers, reaching a billion-dollar valuation; the piece also recalls its record 2019 raise and recent credit facilities.
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The government's AOFM commits $250 million toward Judo Bank as part of a larger warehouse investment, while rival non-bank lenders consider seeking support from a new $15 billion facility for major banks' competitors.
KPMG's report shows Australian fintech investment hit nearly A$3 billion in 2019, driven by CBA's PEXA acquisition and Judo's raise, with notable rounds for Athena, Grow Super and Cover Genius.
NAB is buying neobank 86 400 for roughly $220 million, folding it into UBank, shortly after rival Xinja said it would quit banking, leaving fewer independent Australian neobanks standing.
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A Techboard funding report shows Victorian fintechs took nearly 80% of $2 billion allocated to Australian startups last financial year, led by PEXA's $1.6 billion acquisition and Judo Bank's $930 million raise.
Challenger banks Xinja and 86 400 reach APRA licensing milestones and launch app-based retail transaction and savings accounts, becoming the first neobanks to offer Australian retail deposit products.
Andy Taylor profiles his AI financial wellness platform Douugh, detailing Monex's strategic investment, a Mastercard partnership and a planned ASX listing, while arguing it rejects the neobank label.
Melbourne challenger bank Judo raised a record A$400 million Series A, drawing new offshore backers Bain Capital Credit and Tikehau Capital, and aims to lend $1 billion to small businesses by Christmas.